You can 3D print these free Honda concept car models at home

We can't print repair parts at home—yet. But we can make and customize model cars.

The day when we can skip a trip to the parts store and just download and 3D-print what we need to fix our cars is probably still many years in the future. Until that time arrives, we'll have to satisfy ourselves with printing out small-scale versions of our favorite cars, something Honda has now made easier.

Honda has become the second automaker after Porsche to make digital model files available to download free of charge with the launch of Honda 3D Design Archives. Visitors can download the data for five Honda concepts from the last 20 years, including the 2013 NSX concept. In December 2013, Porsche released a similar data file for the Cayman.

The data is published in a standard format known as a stereolithography (or .stl file) that should work with pretty much any 3D printer, like the common desktop MakerBot Replicator. This means you can open the file in most standard design apps and modify it to your heart's content, or you can just print it as Honda's designers envisioned.

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Since Ford and General Motors have both been promoting their use of 3D printing in the development process, they may want to jump on this bandwagon, too. At the recent 2014 North American International Auto Show, Ford gave away snap-together models of the 2015 Mustang that are now fetching up to $150 on eBay, and Corvette fans would no doubt like to get their hands on the new Z06 and the C7.R.